Who remembers Barbara Holland, aka Barb, in Stranger Things? Long before the Upside Down became a sprawling mythology and long before Hawkins turned into a battlefield of monsters, conspiracies, and cosmic horror, Barb was simply a girl trying to look out for her best friend. She wasn’t chasing adventure, she wasn’t looking for danger, and she wasn’t trying to be a hero. She was just being kind, cautious, and loyal in a world that would end up punishing her for it.
What happened to Barb in Stranger Things?
Shannon Purser as Barb in Stranger Things season 1 | Netflix
Barb was introduced in the first season of Stranger Things, and sadly, she doesn’t end up making it out alive. She was Nancy’s best friend who quietly kept her grounded, but she would meet her end after Nancy becomes distracted by popularity, romance, and the dizzying pull of high school social life.
In Stranger Things season 1, episode 2, titled “The Weirdo on Maple Street,” Nancy and Barb decide to attend Steve’s party at his house. At the party, Barb quickly feels out of place, surrounded by people she doesn’t know well and social dynamics that make her uncomfortable. In an effort to fit in, she attempts to shotgun a beer but accidentally cuts her hand, drawing her away from the festivities to tend to the injury.
She would later find Nancy, who then tells her that she can just go home if she wants. Nancy wants to spend time with Steve. Feeling rejected and isolated, Barb sits by the now-empty pool. It is in this vulnerable moment that the Demogorgon appears, drawn by the blood from her wound.
Barb is suddenly pulled into the Upside Down through the pool and finds herself trapped in a horrifying, parallel world. Despite her attempts to escape, the monstrous creature ultimately kills her, a scene that is sudden, shocking, and heartbreakingly unfair. Her death happens in the third episode of the first season titled “Holly, Jolly.”
We would see Barb’s dead body in the Upside Down several times throughout the series, and she’s even eventually given a proper funeral in Hawkins. However, Nancy is left to live with the guilt and grief of losing her friend. Of course, she isn’t able to focus on Barb’s death for long as more otherworldly threats begin to surface in the town.
While Barb’s story in Stranger Things has already wrapped up, she will reportedly appear in the fifth and final season. Well, not her. Actress Shannon Purser didn’t return to film new scenes as her Barb character is really dead. According to Time Magazine, the show will be using a prop or dummy of Barb’s body, similar to how it was shown in season 1.
The first two batches of the final installment have already come and gone, and Barb’s body wasn’t shown at all. That leaves the Stranger Things series finale. While venturing through the Upside Down in their last battle against Vecna, the Hawkins gang will probably come across her then. We’ll come back and share a breakdown of this scene if it does actually happen.
The Stranger Things series finale is now streaming on Netflix.
